Experience with gestational surrogacy as a treatment for sterility resulting from hysterectomy

A retrospective study was carried out to assess the potential of 16hysterectomized women to achieve surrogate pregnancies. A total of 11patients completed 16 cycles of assisted conception treatment incorporatingin-vitro fertilization and gestational surrogacy. Three other women failedto respond to ovulation induction while two more patients produced fewoocytes which also failed to fertilize. Six host mothers became pregnantthereby giving a pregnancy rate of 37.5% (6/16) per patient and embryotransfer and 27.3% (6/22) per cycle of treatment commenced. Two women latermiscarried, three have given birth to twins and the remaining host hasdelivered a male infant. The commissioning mother's age was closely relatedto occurrence and continuation of pregnancy in the host. Hysterectomizedwomen demonstrate varying patterns of response to assisted conceptiontreatment but gestational surrogacy generally appears to be a feasibleoption especially in younger patients.